Texts taken from the “Sulla Tua Parola” Missal March-April 2024

2nd Sunday of Easter or Divine Mercy Sunday (B)
Octave of Easter – proper

FIRST READING

From the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 4:32-35)
The multitude of those who had become believers was of one heart and soul, and no one considered anything that belonged to him to be his own property, but everything was held in common among them. With great power the apostles gave testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great favor was accorded them all. There was no needy person among them, for those who owned lands or houses would sell them, bring the proceeds of what had been sold, and lay them at the apostles’ feet; then it was distributed to each according to his need. – The Word of God.

Commentary on the first reading

The first characteristic of the apostolic Church is its extreme concern for the needs of others. In a family, brothers and sisters are children of the same father and mother, and likewise, through the charity of Christ, having received Baptism, we are brothers and sisters to one another. The demands of the Spirit break down the barriers of natural selfishness; we feel that we no longer need to defend our own small lives, that we must not keep for ourselves the things we have and can share, and that we no longer live for ourselves. The Spirit has the centrifugal force that we see at work in our washing machines: the drum spins at great speed and the clothes, pushed against the walls, dry; in the same way, we are driven out of our center by the presence of the Holy Spirit within us, and we fulfill our lives and are happy precisely when we concern ourselves with and take an interest in the happiness of others. On the contrary, those who think only of themselves are ultimately unhappy, because love tends toward the other, toward embrace, gift, smile, and help. Love is “dwelling in others,” said Blessed Benedetta Bianchi Porro. 

SECOND READING

From the first letter of the apostle Saint John  (1 Jn 5:1-6)
Beloved, everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been begotten by God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the one begotten by him. In this way we know that we love the children of God: when we love God and obey his commandments. For the love of God is this, that we keep his commandments; and his commandments are not burdensome. Whatever is begotten by God conquers the world. And the victory that conquers the world is our faith. Who indeed conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? He is the one who came through water and blood, Jesus Christ, not with water only, but with water and blood. And the Spirit is the one that testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. – The Word of God. 

Commentary on the second reading

Man’s true drama is not illness or death, but loneliness. We are made in the image and likeness of God, who is love, and if we love no one, our lives are emptied of everything. Everyone wants to be loved and to be the object of others’ attention, but the selfishness of sin has led us to this conviction: we want to be loved by others, but we find it tremendously difficult to love our neighbor, as though love were one-way and we were at the center of everything. Saint John tells us that the love of God consists in keeping the commandments, and these urge us to love our neighbor as ourselves; therefore, to be loved, our first concern must be to love our neighbor. “Where there is no love, put love there,” writes Saint John of the Cross, “and you will draw out love.” In short: let us not expect to be loved by others, let us not complain that no one considers us, thinks of us, or cares for us, but let us concern ourselves with being the first to consider, think of, and care for our neighbor. Our happiness depends on our love for others.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to Johnxx (Jn 20:19-31)
In the evening of that day, the first day of the week, while the doors of the place where the disciples were staying were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them: “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again: “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them: “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” But Thomas, one of the Twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him: “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them: “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the mark of the nails and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” Eight days later, his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood among them and said: “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas: “Put your finger here and see my hands; stretch out your hand and put it into my side; and do not be unbelieving, but believe.” Thomas answered him: “My Lord and my God.” Jesus said to him: “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. – The Gospel of the Lord.

Commentary on the Gospel of the day

In Saint John, the gift of the Holy Spirit does not follow the pattern described by Luke on the day of Pentecost (a roar, a mighty wind, tongues as of fire), but is simpler: Jesus breathes on the apostles, infusing them with the Holy Spirit, just as at the beginning of creation “God formed man out of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life” (Gen 2:7). Here the gift is given so that the apostles may receive the power to forgive sins in God’s name. For only God can remove sins, and the Holy Spirit infused into the apostles is God himself. At Pentecost in the Acts of the Apostles, the immediate fruit of the Spirit is instead preaching, boldness of speech, and courage. The two forms do not contradict each other but complement each other: the Spirit is the driving force behind our actions. At this first Pentecost, Thomas happens not to be present. It seems to be a fault, and perhaps it is (who knows where he had ended up...), but the declaration he later makes sums up the entire Gospel: “My Lord and my God.” Here he proclaims, as few others do, the divinity of Christ. Thomas is initially hostile, but since he is also humble, he immediately surrenders before his Lord and his God.